Ideological Shifts and Developing Language Identity in Afghanistan more

Sat, Apr 30, 15:30-Tue, May 31, 23:55 Asia/Seoul

This presentation discusses how dynamic shifts in the global era influenced Afghan’s willingness to invest in learning a new language, and how this investment is tied to issues of ideology, capital, and identity. This qualitative study employed narrative data collection techniques of narrative frames and semi-structured interviews to comprehend the experiences of Afghans who have lived through a relatively prosperous time in Afghanistan’s recent history, yet who also face uncertainty due to sudden shifts in power that threatened the conditions which had allowed them to align themselves with more global ambitions. The participants were selected as they had all graduated with a degree in English, with most gainfully employed because of this degree. Discussions center on how societal power shifts in Afghanistan initially drove investment in learning English and aligned Afghans with western based ideologies and transnational identity positions. It also exposes how recent geopolitical upheaval impacts the perception of this investment and threatens the possibility of participants maintaining their positions as linguistic entrepreneurs.